It would be easy to dismiss Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings' concert at the Wiltern Saturday night as a mere exercise in nostalgia -- as with the group's new album, I Learned the Hard Way, nothing about their show would have seemed out of place in 1975.

But that would be beside the point. When music -- any music -- is performed with the brio, affection and attention to detail that Jones and the Dap-Kings brought to their exhilaratingly funky two-hour performance here, any arguments about being up-to-date are tossed out the window.

From the moment the nine-piece outfit stepped on stage in dark suits and ties, their most obvious antecedent appeared to James Brown & the JBs. The Dap-Kings (who in addition to backing Jones have recorded with Al Green, Amy Winehouse and Bebel Gilberto) even kick off their performances in typical old-school fashion, taking a few songs to strut their stuff instrumentally.

The rhythm section is taut and swinging, the three-piece horn section (two saxes and a trumpet) adds bumptious punctuation, and the two guitarists play clipped, chicken-scratch riffs. And before Jones makes her entrance, guitarist Binky Griptite plays the MC, ticking off her most popular songs and introducing her as not just “the star of our show” but “the brightest star in the Daptone Universe.”

• Morrissey -- Trust-fund Moz fans from throughout the Southwest who have nothing but time on their hands have gotten be in heaven this coming week. Back on the road behind a new odd 'n' ends set called Swords, one of the few poets in rock who could rival Dylan arrives for a week of shows, kicking off tonight at the Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, $55 … then to the Fox Theater in Pomona on Monday, 301 S. Garey Ave., $69-$99 … down to San Diego on Tuesday to headline Copley Symphony Hall, 750 B St., $49.50-$99.50 … next to Gibson Amphitheatre at Universal CityWalk on Thursday, 100 Universal City Plaza, $45.75-$99.75 … and finally out to the Ventura Theatre on Dec. 11, 26 S. Chestnut St., in Ventura, $89.50. Doll & the Kicks open all dates. 714-740-2000. ticketmaster.com. (Click to read reviews of his triumphant 2007 shows at the Palladium and the Hollywood Bowl, the latter of which is where the pic was taken.)

• The Cranberries -- The Irish band hasn't released a new album in eight years, hasn't performed since a few dates opening for the Stones in 2003 – and vocalist Dolores O'Riordan just issued her second solo effort, No Baggage, in August. Yet the quartet has embarked on a reunion tour that arrives tonight at Club Nokia, 800 W. Olympic Blvd., $31.50. Griffin House will open. Also at the L.A. Live venue this week: electro-industrial outfit Skinny Puppy's In Solvent See Tour with opening act Vverevvolf Grehv, Thursday, $23.50. (That outing also stops Tuesday at House of Blues Las Vegas, $21.50, and Wednesday at House of Blues San Diego, $22.50-$37.50.) 714-740-2000. ticketmaster.com.

• Bebel Gilberto -- The Brazilian charmer, rightful heir to the smooth bossa nova sound given her lineage as daughter to master Joao Gilberto, is getting swell reviews for her fourth stateside release, All in One, her first for the legendary jazz label that was home to her father's most beloved recordings, including March 1964's seminal Getz/Gilberto collaboration (the trendsetting set that gave the world “The Girl from Ipanema”). She plays two shows to the north and south of O.C. next week –- Tuesday at the Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach, 143 S. Cedros Ave., $30 in advance, $32 day of show (a round-trip ticket to Brazil will be given away at the show, by the way) … and Wednesday at the Music Box at the Fonda in Hollywood, 6125 Hollywood Blvd., $23. DJ Lara Gerin opens. 858-481-8140 or bellyup.com, 714-740-2000 or ticketmaster.com for the Fonda.

• Bruce Hornsby -- The piano man's September release on Verve Records -– Levitate, his 10th studio work overall but fourth effort with his hotter (read: jammier) backing band the Noisemakers (who are far more sophisticated than the Range) –- is racking up much critical praise after detours into bluegrass and jazz. Eric Clapton plays on it. The title track appropriates parts of Thomas Newman's score to The Shawshank Redemption. His nephew R.S. Hornsby, to whom the disc is dedicated, died in a car wreck a week after laying down his solo on “Continents Drift.” Hear Hornsby perform selections from it and the rest of his extensive catalog at two shows next week: Monday at House of Blues Anaheim, 1530 S. Disneyland Drive, $35 … and Tuesday at House of Blues Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, 8430 Sunset Blvd., $30. Bob Schneider, an underloved Texan singer-songwriter well worth discovering, opens both gigs. 714-778-BLUE, 714-740-2000. hob.com, ticketmaster.com.

The dance-pop weirdo, who was due to open for hip-hop's biggest jackass on an arena outing this fall, has quickly deflected fallout from its unsurprising cancellation and announced her own tour, with a stop Dec. 21 at Nokia Theatre in the downtown L.A. Live complex.

Breakout rap newcomer Kid Cudi, doing brisk business behind his debut disc Man on the Moon: The End of Day, will open. Tickets, $19.75-$79.75, go on sale Friday, Oct. 23, at 10 a.m. Also look for the pair to play Dec. 19 at San Diego Sports Arena.

Meanwhile, another self-sabotaging soul star is attempting a small-scale comeback.